Sunday, July 10, 2016

Weekend 3 Count 7.10.16 #WWE #NXT #TNA #ROH #LuchaUnderground #NJPW

Wrestling Lockup with Brandon, brought to you by Triple Threat CLE brings you the Weekend 3 Count. W3C brings you wrestling news, rumors and recaps from around the wrestling world. You'll find news and recaps involving WWE, NXT, TNA, ROH, Lucha Underground, GFW, NJPW, House of Hardcore and any Indy promotion that I find an interesting story or a cool discovery in. Be sure to check out the W3C every Sunday at @TripleThreatCLE.

*** WWE/NXT ***

- Brock Lesnar and Summer Slam: With Brock Lesnar set to fight Mark Hunt Saturday night at UFC 200, talks of Lesnar's next opponent at the WWE's hottest summer show have begun. It looks as if Brock Lesnar will go into Summer Slam 2016 and battle a returning "Viper" Randy Orton in a one on one match.

- Is The New Day Splitting Up?: This past week on RAW, WWE looked to have put the beginning stages of a New Day split into play, as Xavier Woods walked away and stated he wanted nothing to do with Kofi and Big E going to The Wyatt Family compound to do battle. Sources have said that even though The New Day are one of WWE's hottest merchandise sellers and over huge with the fans, a split may be coming. With the draft and Brand Extension coming July 19th, there have been rumors that Big E will be split from New Day and begin a singles push on which ever show he ends up on. Though this is not set in stone, it wouldn't surprise me if it happened because WWE has a habit of ruining things by splitting teams that draw them money (The Shield).

- Jerry Lawler Returns: Jerry Lawler returned to his commentary duties on Smackdown after his indefinite suspension was lifted by the WWE. Lawler's domestic assault charges were dropped and WWE allowed The King to return.

- The Club vs. The Shield, It Could Still Happen: According to sources, the man himself, Vince McMahon, wants to eventually have a Club vs. Shield feud happen. Some are wondering how WWE will pull this off with the brand extension and draft coming up on July 19th. Many think it'll be impossible to keep all six men on the same roster in order to pull this off. DailyWrestlingNews.com is claiming that even with the brand extension and draft, WWE officials and Vince McMahon are still very interested in the match, and it will likely take place at some point in the near future, possibly Summer Slam or Survivor Series.

- Building The Club Into A Major Threat: Sources have said that Vince McMahon wants The Club stable to become much more stronger before a feud with The Shield takes place. The trio of AJ Styles, Karl Anderson, and Luke Gallows have a lot of history together, but they need to be built up, for the WWE Universe to see their chemistry and dominance. There has also been talk of the possibility of WWE adding more members to The Club, which some feel would complicate matters in a potential feud with The Shield.

- Where Does Finn Balor Fit In?: This is a big question. For those not familiar with The Bullet Club history, Finn Balor (Prince Devitt), was the original Bullet Club leader before AJ Styles took over. There have been rumors that Balor is coming to the main roster in the WWE Draft, so how is he going to fit in with The Club? Will he join The Club, fight against them, or even reclaim his spot as the leader and feud with Styles? This is a major factor that fans are wondering how will be played out.

- How To Reform The Shield?: With Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns currently set to have a triple threat match at WWE Battleground, a reunion seems way out of the question at this time. The best way to get all three men on the same page again is to give them the same goal. In this case, WWE needs to have The Club get really strong and over take the WWE. The Shield can then go the route of what got them into the WWE, the protectors and eliminators of wrong doings and go after The Club, who'll play the wrong doers. There is no doubt that we’ll see The Club vs. The Shield someday, the question is when will WWE make our fantasy dream match come true.

- Nike vs. WWE: Last Tuesday, June 26th, Nike filed an opposition (PDF) to World Wrestling Entertainment’s application for trademarking the catchphrase “Just Bring It” for clothing. Under its previous name of World Wrestling Federation, WWE had previously held a similar trademark that the company applied for in 2001 and received approval for the following year, but it was cancelled in 2009 because the proper paperwork was not filed within the statutory six year deadline that the US Patent and Trademark Office provides. When it comes to getting a new trademark of the phrase for use on clothing, though, Nike isn’t having it. Nike has continuously used the JUST DO IT Mark in interstate commerce since early 1989 in connection with various clothing items. The argument is, basically, that the marks are too similar, are likely to cause confusion and that Nike has won similar cases in the past.

- Who Are The Highest Paid Superstars In WWE Right Now?: The following is a posted list of the top 10 highest paid WWE superstars as of this month.

- Wrestlers On WWE's Radar: Sources have said that with the Brand Extension and Draft coming up soon, the WWE have contacted four guys for possible WWE runs. The WWE are looking at possibly re-debuting Curt Hawkins and Jimmy Wang Yang and first time debuting lucha wrestling stars Volador Jr. and Rush.

- Dolph Ziggler Inducted Into Kent State Hall of Fame: Kent State Athletics announced last week that Dolph Ziggler will be inducted into the 2016 Kent State University Athletics Hall of Fame. The 38th annual ceremony takes place on Saturday, September 17th. Ziggler was a top amateur wrestler during his days at Kent.

- TNA Impact Final Deletion Recap:
-- Mike Bennett wants to cash in his TNA X-Division Championship tonight instead of waiting for Destination X. Dixie Carter informs Bennett he's defending the title one more time before Destination X in Ultimate X, because she's the president of TNA and has voided Billy Corgan's decision of freeing Bennett from defending the title.
-- Eddie Edwards defeated Mike Bennett, Trevor Lee, Braxton Sutter, Mandrews, Rockstar Spud, DJ Z and Andrew Everett, in an Ultimate X Match, to win the TNA X-Division Championship.
-- James Storm defeated Eli Drake, by DQ, after Drake hit Storm with the TNA King of the Mountain Championship. Drake retains the TNA King of the Mountain Championship.
-- Eddie Edwards is thinking about cashing in the TNA X-Division Championship for a shot at Bobby Lashley and the TNA World Heavyweight Championship at Destination X.
-- Jade defeated Marti Belle, by pinfall, in a Street Fight Match. Jade hit the package pile driver on top of a steel chair on Marti for the win.
-- Mike Bennett demands a TNA World Heavyweight Championship Match. Maria Bennett demands to be TNA President. Maria tells Billy Corgan and Dixie Carter to their faces that either Dixie goes or Maria goes. Dixie refuses to resign. The Bennett's both threaten to walk out. Corgan sticks up for Dixie and tells the Bennett's that they know where the door is if they walk out. The Bennett's decide to stay and instead threaten to ruin Destination X.
-- Bobby Lashley congratulates Eddie Edwards and tells him that he suggests Edwards keep the TNA X-Division Championship instead of cashing it in, if he knows what's best for him.
-- The BroMans and Raquel defeated The Decay, by pinfall, in a Six Person Tag Team Match. The BroMans hit their BroDown finisher for the victory.
-- Eddie Edwards cuts a promo to make a decision on his cash in. Bobby Lashley interrupts and instead makes a proposal. Champion vs. Champion, both titles on the line, or Edwards can walk away and keep his TNA X-Division Championship. Edwards accepts the champion vs. champion match. Lashley attacks and suplexes Edwards. Lashley goes for the spear, but Edwards lands a kick and Lashley retreats.
-- Drew Galloway and Ethan Carter air out their differences and problems with each other via satellite. Both plan to meet face to face at Destination X and kick each others ass.
-- Matt Hardy defeated Jeff Hardy, by pinfall, in a Final Deletion Match. Matt lit the Hardy symbol on fire as Jeff stood on top of it, causing Jeff to fall off and hit the ground below. Matt covers and scores the pinfall.

Prepare for Final Deletion!

- TNA Impact Move: With the WWE announcing the beginning of live Smackdown's on Tuesday in July, TNA have proposed a TNA Impact move. TNA Impact will be moving on PopTV from Tuesday at 9pm to Thursday at 8pm, starting July 21st. TNA is obviously worried about the effect a live WWE Smackdown show will have on TNA Impact ratings, which brought up the move.

*** RING OF HONOR ***- ROH TV Recap: With the 4th of July falling on Monday, ROH didn't air anything new this week.

- Shibata At ROH Death Or Dishonor: ROH who have a working relationship with NJPW announced that IWGP Heavyweight Champion Shibata has been booked to appear at Ring of Honor’s Death Before Dishonor pay per view on August 20th. Shibata's opponent is unknown at this time.

- Jay Lethal Throws Out First Pitch: ROH World Heavyweight Champion, Jay Lethal, received the opportunity to throw out the first pitch at the Tampa Bay Rays vs. Anaheim Angels baseball game on July 6th. Lethal who resides in Tampa, Florida was honored to throw out the ceremonial first pitch.

*** LUCHA UNDERGROUND ***

- Lucha Underground: Ultima Lucha Dos Part 1 Recap:
-- The Mack defeated Brian Cage, by pinfall, in a Unique Opportunity Tournament, Falls Count Anywhere Match. Mack scored a rollup pinfall on Cage, after Cage slipped on beer going for a curb stomp on a cinder block.
-- Dario Cueto announces Son of Havoc vs. El Texano will now be a Boyle Heights Bar Fight Match.
-- Son of Havoc defeated El Texano, by pinfall, in a Unique Opportunity Tournament, Boyle Heights Bar Fight Match. Havoc hits a Bicycle Kick that sent Texano into a box of wine for the pinfall.
-- Dario Cueto announces that the Unique Opportunity Tournament Finals between Son of Havoc and The Mack will be a Falls Count Anywhere Match.
-- Son of Havoc defeated The Mack, by pinfall, in a Falls Count Anywhere Match, to win the Unique Opportunity Tournament. Havoc hit the Shooting Star Press for the win.
-- Dario Cueto presents Son of Havoc with a briefcase with $250,000 inside. Cueto then states that Havoc can use it to buy into a Lucha Underground Championship Match next year at Ultima Lucha 3. Havoc accepts the opportunity. Cueto, however, changes his mind, takes back the money and announces Havoc first has to beat Dr. Wagner Jr.
-- Dr. Wagner Jr. defeated Son of Havoc, by pinfall. Wagner dodges the Shooting Star Press and hits the Dr. Driver for the pinfall. Wagner is given the briefcase with $250,000 inside.

Ultima Lucha Dos Part 1 Highlights:

- Kevin Kross Signs With Lucha: Sources are saying that “The Tollman” Kevin Kross has officially signed with Lucha Underground. Kross has been wrestling regularly for Future Stars Of Wrestling in Las Vegas and he appeared on Global Force Wrestling’s TV tapings last year. Sources have said that he may have done some work during the season 3 tapings and the talk going around is that he will be brought back for season 4.

- Sexy Star Entering Women's Boxing: Former Lucha Underground Champion Sexy Star stated recently that she was taking off her mask and making a big move into the world of boxing. Star, whose real name is Dulce Maria Garcia Rivas, is married to 58-10 Mexican boxer Jhonny Gonzalez, and trained in kickboxing and Muay Thai. Star has stepped back considerably from wrestling at this point, but is expected to continue on with Lucha Underground going forward, while starting her boxing career.

- Moose Sighting: MLW Radio reported earlier today that former ROH star Moose, who has been on WWE's radar as of late, might have signed with TNA. Later in the day they posted an update, stating that Moose confirmed to them that TNA made an offer but he has not signed yet. ROH is also in the running for resigning Moose and bringing him back to the promotion. WWE originally was set to sign Moose, but backed off after finding out about his domestic assault charge from back in 2009. WWE have had enough issues recently with Adam Rose and Jerry Lawler catching domestic assault charges and are trying to steer clear of anymore issues.

- nWo Anniversary: This past week marked the 20th anniversary of the night the nWo was formed.

And that's this week's W3C! Join me every Sunday afternoon as I bring you news, recaps and rumors all around the wrestling world!